Stevo F Posted January 24, 2019 Share Posted January 24, 2019 My son who is at college with the '98 GT reported ot me that he began to drive it on a very cold morning the other day and as soon as he would let off the gas the car would downshift (he said it downshifted into first). He also said the car felt a little like it was dragging, like the emergency brake was on. As he turned around and drove it back home he noticed a burning smell and when he got home and lifted the hood there was some smoke coming from area the front of the engine. That's all I know and he is not very mechanically inclined. I happened to show him where the ATF dipstick is right before he went back to school and the car made the 50 mile drive there with no issues. I asked him to check the ATF level and he said he could remove the ATF dipstick (it does get stuck pretty good and you have to work to pull it out). He also said there are no CELS and the AT light is not blinking or staying on. I hope to stop by where he lives Friday morning on my weekly trip to the office, as it's not very far away. Obviously I want to see if there are any ATF leaks. Since this is far from home and the only tools are what I happen to bring, what else should I look for while I'm there? I'm guessing I've likely have it towed to a shop run by an ex- Subaru mechanic about 20 miles form there if I can't do anything to fix it on the spot. The 2nd gen GT's seem to be dropping like flies in our family :-( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doublechaz Posted January 24, 2019 Share Posted January 24, 2019 Check the look and smell of the ATF. Look for any leaks below the car to see if ATF or something else is leaking based on position. Check front diff and PS levels. I hope it is something other than the trans,... Take a good bit of tools with you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo F Posted January 24, 2019 Author Share Posted January 24, 2019 The burning smell did remind my son of when the A/C compressor locked up last summer and started burning up the belt. I was musing if the clutch failed on the new compressor and was overheating the belt again would it have caused the other behavior the car was exhibiting. My first though of the downshifting was an issue with the ECU or shift solenoid since they largely control the shifting on the 4EAT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doublechaz Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 A lot of drag from the A/C might give those symptoms. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo F Posted January 25, 2019 Author Share Posted January 25, 2019 So checked the car out this morning. No fluid leaks, started it up and it ran fine and drove it around the block a couple of times with no downshifting or any other issues. I did find two issues- The new A/C compressor didn't seem to kick on when the A/C or defrost was called for, but the compressor would run for a few seconds and cut off. I don't know if something happened to it previously when my son was driving it. I found what the "smoke" was that he saw coming from under the hood. After I drove it, I saw some steam wafting up from the lower part of the radiator. I removed the overflow tank, but still couldn't find the source. I assume a pinhole leak in the radiator somewhere. I assume it's safe to drive with it since it's a small leak, as long as we watch the coolant level. I told him to duplicate the drive he was making and see if it acts up again. I think he noticed the steam because it was a very cold morning- otherwise I'm betting it's had that leak for a little while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doublechaz Posted January 26, 2019 Share Posted January 26, 2019 That pinhole could grow at any time, but being vigilant of smell and termperature gauge can get you by for a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo F Posted February 19, 2019 Author Share Posted February 19, 2019 So my son tried driving the car again and again said it was abruptly downshifting/ slowing down. He said if he was doing 20 MPH and let off the gas the car would basically just stop. He also said something about a low idle at that point. He did say there was a burning smell when he returned home (he took a friend with him for his opinion). One thing I thought of is a stuck caliper. I asked him to see if any one wheel was a lot hotter than the others after driving. Since it had been over 30 minutes since he had driven it, he mentioned all the wheels were cold but the passenger's front was warm. He'll try it again tomorrow and check the wheel temps right after. At least if it is a brake problem, I can take the passenger's side caliper we pulled form our '97 GT and install it there at the house where he is staying and hopefully get it back on the road, otherwise it looks like a tow to a shop about 20 miles from that I trust. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doublechaz Posted February 19, 2019 Share Posted February 19, 2019 If you get a chance to tell him not to just slap his hand on the wheels it would be good. Stuck brakes could make enough heat to give him a decent burn. I learned a similar lesson in electronics lab. I checked to see if that chip was hot and for a couple weeks I had a picture of it burned into the end of my finger like the guy in Raiders of the Lost Ark. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo F Posted February 23, 2019 Author Share Posted February 23, 2019 My son took it for a test drive today so we now know what the problem is... Now to find a decent day to drive the 50+ miles with all my tools + the brake caliper from the '97 GT and hope I can replace it in the driveway of the house where my son is staying Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doublechaz Posted February 23, 2019 Share Posted February 23, 2019 A friend of mine, after a brake problem like that, had the tire fail from heat damage at the bead. Just a little something to keep in mind for down the road after you have this fixed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo F Posted February 26, 2019 Author Share Posted February 26, 2019 So installed the '97 Caliper and all is good. It turns out one of the slide pins in the existing caliper was frozen. I oped to replace the whole thing given the heat the caliper was exposed to. Drove it home on the 52 mile drive and it drove fine. I'll look at the little bit ofsteams I've seen coming from the lower driver's side of the radiatior, or perhaps will just install the '97 GT radiator and do a coolant change, which it's due for. Love this car as it's so clean and only 103K miles on the clock. Tmtpred to offer my 2003 Forester to my son and keep this car home. Also, noticed a few small cracks started in the leather seats, so I'll need ot research a good leather conditioner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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